Heredity of the Agglutinogens M and N of Landsteiner and Levine

Abstract

Summary and Conclusions: The theory that the inheritance of the agglutinogens M and N of Landsteiner and Levine depends upon a single pair of allelomorphic genes may be tested by determining the frequencies of the three types in various populations. The frequencies of the genes is determined by the formulae: and where m and n are the frequencies of the genes M and N respectively, and it is then determined how closely the relation m + n = 1 holds. The size of the deviation, D = 1 — + depends upon (1) size of the sample examined, (2) whether or not the population is a homogeneous one, (3) whether or not the sample is a random one and (4) whether or not there are errors in technique. The probable error of D is equal to , where N equals the number of individuals in the sample examined. It would be desirable to determine the distribution of the agglutinogens M and N in as many homogeneous populations as possible (just as was done for the Landsteiner blood groups), and determine the size of D and compare it with its probable error for each case. When a sufficient number of populations have been studied in this manner, we shall really be able to determine whether or not statistical data favor the theory of a single pair of allelomorphic genes.